Do you like to read? Have you ever stayed up waaaayyy to late reading? Then this is the spot for you. This is the spot for the eclectic book reader. I love all kinds of books, in any format. I can't wait to share my love of books with you.

Staying out of trouble isn’t possible for Julep Dupree. She has managed not to get kicked out of her private school, even though everyone knows she’s responsible for taking down a human-trafficking mob boss—and getting St. Agatha’s golden-boy Tyler killed in the process. Running cons holds her guilty conscience at bay, but unfortunately, someone wants Julep to pay for her mistakes . . . with her life.

Against her better judgment, Julep takes a shady case that requires her to infiltrate a secretive organization that her long-gone mother and the enigmatic blue fairy may be connected to. Her best friend, Sam, isn’t around to stop her, and Dani, her one true confidante, happens to be a nineteen-year-old mob enforcer whose moral compass is as questionable as Julep’s. But there’s not much time to worry about right and wrong—or to save your falling heart—when there’s a contract on your head.

She falls silent for a moment, thinking. "In Kharkiv, a group of us orphans lived in an underground maintenance area for the city heating system. Lots of pipes that steamed, kept us warm in winter."

Holy crap. This is a happy story? I keep my mouth shut, though. This is the first time Dani's ever actually talked about her past.

"One day, Tatyana—she was six or seven then—came through the manhole carrying a bedraggled cat. It had only one eye and a chunk out of its ear. The fur was patchy and covered in so much grime we could not tell what color it was. The cat took one look at us skinny gutter rats and thought it was about to get eaten. It clawed free of Tatyana's arms but couldn't figure out how to get back through the manhole, so it flew around our shelter, bouncing off kids and pipes and yowling at the top of its lungs. We were all scrambling trying to catch it and throw it out before it drew militsiya attention. Mykola finally forced it out. He was covered in scratches, but he was the hero for the day, so he got the largest portion of food. Poor Tatyana. We teased her about it for months afterward."

I laugh. I can't help it. It's a horrible thought, Dani as a child living underground in a post-Soviet concrete jungle, dodging cops and scrounging for food, but the mental image of a bunch of kids hopping around trying to catch a cat that's gone nuclear is like something out of a sitcom.

"Did it ever come back?" I ask.

"The cat?" Dani says, smiling enough to actually show teeth. "No. But Tatyana couldn't help herself when it came to animals. She was always dragging in some poor unfortunate creature with a limp or when it was zero degrees outside. Sort of like you."

When I set out to write the Trust Me series, I had no idea what I was getting into. I didn't do anything in the way of outlining, so I just went with whatever answer came to mind while I was writing the scene. What is Julep's main goal in the story? Find her missing father! Why is he missing? He was kidnapped by the mob! Why was he kidnapped by the mob? He was trying to help victims of human trafficking! …

And then I fell down a rabbit hole of information about human trafficking and immigration and law enforcement and orphans. The orphans in particular stuck with me. According to the World Orphan Project, the Ukraine has over 100,000 orphans, 90% of whom are orphaned for social reasons, such as alcoholism, abandonment, or incarceration of parents. Many of them have experienced significant abuse. These orphans typically grow up in state-run orphanages of over 200 kids. Many kids run away, preferring to live on the streets. Either way, far too many of them end up in prostitution or become criminals.

Many of these street children are addicted to sniffing glue and other drugs, and they steal to stay alive. It's amazing to me that any of them make it out of such conditions, but some of them do. Some of them are lucky enough to find temporary foster homes or even permanent adoptive parents. I liked reading those stories. It helped me get through the rest of it. In developing Dani's backstory, I learned a lot about her and how I wanted to portray her—single-minded, doggedly determined, loyal to a fault, and decisive without much in the way of doubt or regret. She acts, and then she deals with the consequences. She has an intrinsic sense of justice that is part of the fabric of her being. I think that quality alone would have helped her survive, and eventually escape, the streets of Kharkiv.

Mary Elizabeth Summer is an instructional designer, a mom, a champion of the serial comma, and a pie junkie. Oh, and she sometimes writes books about teenage delinquents saving the day. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her daughter, her partner, and her evil overlor–er, cat. TRUST ME, I'M LYING, a YA mystery, will be released by Delacorte in Fall 2014.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Cover Reveal:
Loving Red (#1) Alisha Costanzo

For Sergeant Severins Bouvier, silence means tactical planning and a large death toll, and he can’t shake how danger threatens him on the beaches of Miami, especially after seeing one of his associates in a local sandwich shop. Worse, the enemy seems fascinated with the woman he can’t stop thinking about—a woman determined not to trust him.
Everything about Sev crashes through Kaia’s carefully placed boundaries, traps, and avoidances. Regardless of her lack of interest in the majority of men, the ones that did catch her off guard left a lot of collateral damage. Who better than a soldier to understand that?
The problem is that she trusts him. Just not with her heart.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alisha Costanzo is from a Syracuse suburb. She earned her MFA in creative writing from the University of Central Oklahoma, where she currently teaches English. She’s the author of BLOOD PHOENIX: REBIRTH and BLOOD PHOENIX: CLAIMED, and co-editor of DISTORTED. In the meantime, she will continue to corrupt young minds, rant about the government, and daydream about her all around nasty creatures.

Welcome
to Books, Books, and More Books. I am
pleased to share this book with you.
Thank you for visiting and please come again.

“Can you help me, please?”

Pradipta wheeled around.

Standing behind was an unusually attractive lady. She wore a dark blue, chiffon saree which set off her fair complexion even more. Other than a thin gold chain with a tear-drop pearl pendant on her neck, she wore no jewelery. Her lips were pale pink, with no lipstick. Only the dark make-up on her eyes made her look even more unfathomable.

“You’re talking to me?”

Thus begins Coke, with this chance encounter at Kathmandu airport. But the plot thickens when the lady requests him to include her suitcase as part of his checked in baggage and then does a vanishing act, once the aircraft lands in Calcutta. What follows is a riveting page-turner, replete with unexpected twists as you encounter gangs warring over narcotics, policemen, functionaries, and a sinister master-mind who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. The furiously paced narrative takes you from the sleepy airport of Kathmandu to the packed streets of Calcutta, a mysterious mansion on the outskirts of town and an unforgettable chase-sequence through New Market.
From the author of the acclaimed Bengali novels ‘Kidnap’, ‘Shaaper Jhaanpi’ and ‘Robibar’ comes a high-octane thriller that’s seriously addictive and keeps you hooked till the end.

About the Author:
In so far as the pursuit of any true vocation is a life in itself, Barun Chanda – advertising guru, actor and writer, may be said to have had three. Born in Dhaka, he did his Masters in English at Jadavpur University. Following a brief stint as a lecturer in English, he embarked upon a career in the creative department of advertising that spanned more than 30 years, won him numerous awards and culminated in his tenure as Creative Director at Clarion McCann.

Acting occupies the second of his three worlds. In 1971, he scorched the big screen as a high-flying executive, playing the protagonist in Satyajit Ray’s ‘Seemabaddha’, and winning a special President of India Award for his performance. After a hiatus that lasted over two decades, he returned to the screen during the 90’s, and has since then acted in numerous TV series and more than 35 movies. Tackling Bollywood and Tollywood roles with equal aplomb, he has distinguished himself in films such as Lootera, Roy, Chotushkone, Aborto, MIshor Rohoshyo, Nayanchampa-r Dinraatri , Bela Sheshe and Jogajog. Chorabaali, where where once again he plays the protagonist, is his latest venture.

Barun’s third passion is writing. A regular film reviewer and contributor of articles to major dailies, in the last eight years he has published four highly acclaimed and successful novels in Bengali. His work has played a major role in establishing the adult thriller genre in Bengali literature.

your best friend started a rebellion in the
middle of a war? your lover awakened a deep evil and helped it
grow? your people were too cowardly to face a
battle? you stole an ancient power source? you gambled with the fate of the world?

Join five powerful warriors each with a unique ability and magical
weapons. Their quest is to discover where the transformed creatures are coming
from and put a stop to it.

Along the way they run into treacherous
immortals, sea monsters, powerful beasts of the air and talking animals.

Each has their own reasoning for joining the
quest, but one carries a deadly secret which just might be the destruction of
them all.

Author Bio

Angela J. Ford is an imaginative and entertaining writer who creates
stories of fanciful worlds that enable young adults to confidently believe in
possibilities and overcome differences to be stronger together.

Born in Ann Arbor, MI, and raised in Alabaster, AL, she moved to
Nashville, TN, where she currently resides, to pursue a degree in Music
Business at Belmont University.

Although her career has not been largely focused on creative writing, it
has been an integral part of her lifestyle. Brought up as a bookworm and
musician, she began writing The Four Worlds, a fantasy action, adventure series
at the age of 12. The storyline of those books was largely based off of
creative games she played with her sisters.

Originally finished when she was 16, after college, Angela began to
re-write the Four Worlds Series, bringing it from a child's daydream to an
adventure young and old alike can enjoy. Inspired by fairy tales, high magic
and epic fantasy, you’ll enjoy your adventures within the Four Worlds.

If you happen to be in Nashville, you’ll mostly
likely find her at a local coffee shop, enjoying a white chocolate mocha and
furiously working on her next book. Make sure you say hello!

Starman stood at the shore of the
great Dejewla Sea and stared at the enormity of the swaying body of
liquid. The water shone like sapphires, beckoning him to crawl into its watery
graves and swim and dive as if he were a child of aqua. Waves rippled across
the surface but any animals that used to dwell near the Sea had long
since disappeared. He could smell the richness of the soil as the plants close
to the water stretched their roots deep, bloating themselves on saltless
seawater.
Alaireia, on
the other hand, had already dropped her pack of supplies and was loosening the
black belt that carried her long sword. “It’s good we’re camping here for a
time,” she was saying, sitting on a fallen log to unstrap her black boots as
Starman continued to be captivated by the Sea. “I, for one, would like one last
swim before we enter the desert. Swift claims it is a dry, barren place.”
“It smells
like dead fish,” Starman said, wrinkling his nose.
“Starman?”Alaireia asked, standing barefoot on the shore. “Are you coming
for a swim?”
“Oh.”
Starman’s face turned red. “I…I…uh…”
Alaireia laughed
as she waded into the water to see how it felt. “The water is fine!”
“Uh…”
Starman turned to go, almost tripping over his feet. “I’ll go downstream with
the others,” he stammered.
“Wait,
Starman,”Alaireia called. He turned around, still blushing, but she stood
knee high in the water, staring into it. “What did you say it smelt like?”
Starman
opened his mouth to reply when something leaped out of the water, snatching Alaireia and
dragging her under. “Fish! Crinte!” Starman shouted all at once. “Help!
The fish have Alaireia!” He drew his sword and ran to the waterside, but
all was still again. Eyes like saucers, he ran back to the trees.
“Crinte! Marklus! Swift! Hurry!” he yelled.
He ran back
to the Sea only to shout and leap back in surprise as a monster surged out of
the water, its long, brown-spotted tentacles waving in every direction. Along
the length of each tentacle suction holes moved in and out as if the
creature were breathing in air and water at the same time. Its round head had
barely emerged but it was the center of the tentacles with two,
horrifyingly large, ink black eyes. Starman could see a mirror black image of
himself drowning in the sticky elixir of those eyes and immediately leaned over
to vomit in a bush. As he wiped his mouth on the back on his hand he
saw Alaireia, wrapped in one of the sucking tentacles. It was one of the
most beautiful and terrifying sights he had ever seen as she rose with the
creature, streaming with now muddied water. Her black hair hung long and her shoulders
were bare as she gripped the tentacle in both arms, her face a mass of
concentrated fury as she struggled for release.
“Alaireia!”
Starman yelled, dashing into the water with his sword raised. A tentacle
reached out for him and he slashed at it, ripping it open and causing black
blood to leak out. Starman almost gagged as the stench of decaying fish
overwhelmed him in the water. Despite it he moved closer to the great creature.
It towered above him, lifting Alaireia higher into the air. Starman
slashed at the next tentacle that tried to capture him, but
ultimately failed as one wrapped its slimy length around him and hugged his
body uncomfortably close. Still waving his sword, he proceeded to chop at the
thick length that held him, but the creature was unforgiving. It reared its
head even further out of the water, displaying a wide gaping mouth. It opened
it and roared.

This product or book may have been distributed for review; this in no way
affects my opinions or reviews.

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Do you like to read? Have you ever stayed up waaaayyy to late reading? Then this is the spot for you. Join me as I review books, link to other fabulous book sites, and please respond with your comments as well. This is the spot for the eclectic book reader. I love all kinds of books, in any format (book, e-book, chapters in a magazine... heck I even read the back of the cereal box every time). I can't wait to share my love of books with you and see what has captured your attention as well.